


Healing

by beware_of_you



Category: American Horror Story, American Horror Story: Apocalypse, American Horror Story: Coven
Genre: F/F, Soft mistyxmallory, god i fucking miss these lesbians, its canon to me, kinda post finale???, mallory is an angel uwu, misty gay, misty's still healing from hell, she's oblivious, soft foxxayTM, zoe and mallory just want the useless lesbians to get together already
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-23
Updated: 2019-01-23
Packaged: 2019-10-14 21:37:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,583
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17516309
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/beware_of_you/pseuds/beware_of_you
Summary: misty is a useless lesbian cordelia is a useless lesbian and mallor + zoe just want their moms to get their shit together and gET TOGETHER ALREADY





	Healing

Misty's hands hovered over the plants that were clustered on the short, blue table to the side in the small room. Her hands were trembling, her breathing shallow and shaky. At the last minute, just before her fingertips grazed the greens, she inhales sharply and jerks her hand away as if it shocked her. She didn't trust something so pretty, so lively. Hell had tricked her many times before with visions like this, visions that would crumble to dust as soon as she grazed them with her fingertips and place her right back in that god awful classroom.

Pulling her shawl tighter around her shoulders, the blonde looked around the room at the tables clustered with bottles of potions and herbs, the small desk strewn with papers that are vaguely illuminated by a desk lamp, the slightly yellowed pages that are covered in Cordelia's quick, scribbly handwriting. She see a jar of her Louisiana swamp mud perched on a shelf with other various herbs and powders, something she had collected with the head mistress shortly after coming to the academy.

She even notices that Cordelia has kept her Stevie records, all sorted neatly in a box and all in the same shape she remembers them in. Her record player sits beside the box, looking well polished and taken care of (all gifts from Zoe for bringing Kyle and Madison back from the dead [and an apology gift for the tapes Kyle had smashed]).

Misty feels tears spring to her eyes at the familiar sights and slowly brings up a hand to wipe at them. The other hand has a grip so tightly on her shawl, her knuckles go white and her hand starts to fall asleep. She accepts the minute pain; at the moment, it's the only thing holding her together, holding her to reality.

How long had it been since she's set foot inside Cordelia's greenhouse? Months? Years?

She couldn't be certain, time worked differently here than it did in Hell. After a while down there, time either slowed down to the point where it felt like it didn't exist or it just became a blurry, jumbled mess that made no sense.

Misty exhaled slowly, shakily as her tears fell down her cheeks. She closed her eyes as she sucked breath in between her teeth. How much of this was real? Was she even back at Robichaux's? Did Nan and the voodoo demon really relieve her of her torment? Had she really been in Cordelia's arms, felt her warm tears on her skin? Or will she open her eyes back to that classroom, the vicious cycle continuing on?

She bites on her lip to quiet herself, tensing up when she feels someone's presence behind her.

She opens her eyes and nearly sends an empty beaker at Mallory's head, her hand only stopping midway when she sees the smaller witch. The beaker that was picked up off the table with her magic drops to the floor with a crash.

Mallory's eyes widen slightly and she moves back as soon as she spots the swamp witch, hands up in a peaceful gesture. "I'm sorry, I didn't see you."

"Shit! 'm sorry Mallory, I didn't think anyone would find me in here," Misty blurts out at the same time, cheeks flushing red with shame at the thought that she was ready to attack the younger girl without hesitation. However, she is a bit relieved to see Mallory here; it means that she really is back at Robichaux's and not in hell. After all, why would Satan bother creating someone who (no offense to the girl) had no logical place in her personal hell?

"Do you have a class in here? I can leave..." Misty murmurs, wiping her eyes with the back of her hands.

"No uh..." Mallory swallows to calm herself, feeling a bit awkward at interrupting Misty's privacy. "As far as I know, there's no classes in here. We have herbs and potions class in the room with the grand piano. I don't think anyone uses this room."

"Cor-" Misty stops, correcting herself awkwardly as she rubs her shoulder self consciously. "Miss Cordelia brought me here a lot when I first came here. She taught how to make potions n I helped nurse her sick or dying plants."

She looks away from Mallory and finally places her fingertips against the small desk, fingers shaking as she ghosts them over Cordelia's handwritten notes, tracing the thin letters. She shakily sighs, chest tightening at the memories she's stirring up. "It was the place I felt safest when I was here... I thought nobody would find me here cause the house is so full but this place is always so empty. It feels like hardly anyone comes in here except maybe..."

She pauses, slowly feeling the name roll off her tongue and cringing at how unnatural the formal term sounded coming from her. Maybe in her head it sounded right, Cordelia was the Supreme after all and was more than deserving of the respectful title. But since she came back, it always felt weird addressing her so formally, more so when she said it out loud.

Still, she addressed the Supreme with the formality when they talk face to face and uses it around all the new students.

"Miss Cordelia, maybe Zoe too, but not as much... It's still feels like the safest place in the house to me..."

"Do you want me to go, then? I didn't mean to bother you..." Mallory trails off, biting her lip. She feels slightly guilty; she hadn't meant to even come in here. She had stumbled upon the greenhouse on accident and her curiosity had peaked when she saw the cluster of plants that oddly reminded her of home. She didn't think anyone was in here and just decided to explore.

Misty hesitated at the young girl's question, but only briefly. Part of her wants Mallory to leave her alone, but she ultimately decides that she can't be alone right now. After all, Mallory is keeping her sane, reminding her she's not in Hell and that she's finally home. So she shakes her head slowly, managing to smile a bit before she looks towards the plants once more. "No, it's fine, you can stay if you'd like."

Mallory nods slowly, unsure of what to say now. She and Misty had only briefly met the day she came to the academy (or at least to no one's knowledge but her own, she came back). Cordelia had introduced them, but the two witches hadn't had a chance to talk because Mallory felt as if she were intruding in on their reunion. So, she had given the two women their space, smiling to herself as she did.

Since then, the nature witch barely saw Misty, who was either with Cordelia, Queenie or Zoe, trying to catch up on what she missed. Mallory never wanted to interrupt them; it seemed like their talks were about the coven that happened before Cordelia's broadcast, and she felt that was none of her business because she wasn't there.

To sum things up, Mallory feels short on topics and doesn't feel it's polite nor her place to ask about how Misty is feeling. It doesn't help that she feels the added pressure of not mentioning anything that happened in the timeline she came from (which she doubt she would bring up ever or that it would even matter, but she's seen enough movies to know that maybe letting it spill she singlehandedly saved the coven through events that hadn't even happened might bring about harm to either herself or others).

Her eyes wonder to the table that caught Misty's attention, lighting up as she recognizes the one the swamp witch is currently focused on. "That's a althea," she murmurs.

Misty whips her head around to face the young witch, eyebrows raised in a slightly shocked expression. "You know plants?"

Mallory nods, relaxing a bit as the tension that was once in the room disappears. "Yeah, some because of class, but I know more from being around them a lot before I came here. I had a small althea plant on my windowsill at home that my grandmother gave me. She said it symbolized protection..."

"It does," Misty confirms, turning her attention back to the plant, the small smile still ghosting her lips. "You can also use it for all kinds of healing. My grandaddy used to make a syrup from the roots and put it in my tea when I had a sore throat."

"I never used plants for medicines at home," Mallory confessed. "I had them around because I loved the meaning behind them. I'm kind of the weird crystals/succulents type of hippy, I guess," she jokes lightly.

"I know a lot from my grandaddy," Misty says quietly. "He taught me a lot about plants and the powers of Louisiana swamp mud. He lived mostly off the land, knew what plants were safe to eat and which ones could heal you." (She almost adds a lighthearted joke about how that knowledge really came in handy when she was burned and chased off into the swamps, but decides against it.)

"Of course, Miss Cordelia taught me more about modern potions, more about plants I was never sure about, ones used for witchcraft, powders and concoctions that all sounded so foreign to me but could be used to enhance our magic like I had never seen before... It was all so fascinating..." She trails off, hands ending up back on Cordelia's notes. Her hand is currently on a spell that she hadn't paid attention to up until now, a spell that supposedly would help a witch connect with the Underworld.

She bites her lip softly, her eyes starting to water again. The page looked newer compared to the others, the handwriting more frantic, the letters more deeply imprinted into the page as if the Supreme was determined to get every step and ingredient down.

Moving the page to the side with shaking fingers, Misty finds a similar spell under. Then, moving that one, another. Her fingers brush at least ten more of these spells, the tears that were threatening to spill over finally breaking free.

How many times had the older witch attempted to bring her back from Hell? How many nights did Cordelia come into the greenhouse and tried to reach her, only to come back empty handed? "Oh, Cordelia..." Misty whispers quietly, the guilt of imagining her Supreme beating herself up over the countless failures she must have had trying to bring her back making her voice crack.

Mallory must have heard her, because Misty suddenly feels her hand rest gently on her arm. It's a soothing gesture, one that causes Misty to smile despite her tears. "She really cares about you, it's not hard to tell," Mallory tells the older witch, giving her a small smile of her own. "She was really happy to have you back."

"She cares about us all," Misty says quietly, voice dripping with affection. "She has a big heart. When I came here the second time..." She stops, remembering that Mallory didn't know much, if anything at all, about the old coven.

However, unknown to Misty, Mallory knows, but she let's the older witch tell her story, listening intently as if she's hearing it for the first time.

Misty wipes her eyes with the end of her shawl, taking a deep breath to composed herself. "When I first came here, it was cause Zoe needed my help. The old Supreme, Fiona Goode..." Her lips curl up as she growls the name out as it were poison on her tongue. "She had killed Madison, so Zoe brought me in to fix her up. I couldn't stay here though, Fiona made this place feel unsafe, made it stink of danger and death, and I couldn't handle it. But I came back, when I had no other choice choice."

Mallory notes the way Misty's expression changes as she starts the next part of her story, how her face and eyes soften. She has to stop herself from breaking out into a smile at the swamp witch's expression.

In the timeline she had saved the world from, the one that no one knows about but her and that now feels like a distant memory, she can recall her early years at Miss Robichaux's. She can recall the same expression that Misty had mirrored on Cordelia's face when she would talk about the swamp witch. She could recall the same tone from the Supreme, the loving, adoring tone that she had only when she talked about Misty Day.

It was amusing to see the parallel between the timelines, and even though this one is altered slightly, Mallory knows that both witches' feelings were something that no amount of time travel could change.

Getting the two to admit them was something else that, quite annoyingly, both timelines also had in common.

"It was the first time I met Cordelia, blind, lost and had this... hopelessness about her that made me want to cry. But she had something about her, something that made me trust her completely... Maybe it's that she was the first person to never ask anything of me, to use me for her own gain, to take me in without even knowing anything but my name, to be so willing to protect me..."

Misty trails off and smiles again, biting on her lip, not even noticing her slip up. "She was the only person, even more so than Zoe, that I completely trusted and the first person in a very long time I actually believed everything she said. She treated me with respect, encouraged my powers like no one had before and didn't care about how loud I played my Stevie, silly as that may sound." She chuckles a bit at that, releasing her lip from her teeth. "After a while, that hopelessness that had been around her just... vanished..."

"I guess I never really knew how much she missed me, or even really cared about me," she finished quietly, once again looking at the spells below her fingers.

"Of course she missed you," Mallory said, giving Misty's arm a gentle squeeze. "It really sounds like you had more of an affect on her than you even realized. You helped her find her confidence and it's not hard to see that you mean a lot to her."

Misty smiles a bit, nodding to herself as she chews on her bottom lip. "I doubt it, she always had it in her. It just came out more when Fiona was gone cause she wasn't there to bring her down anymore. And she cares for everyone, I'm not anyone special."

"And you helped," Mallory said, trying her best not to be too firm with the older witch. "And you mean a lot to her, I can tell. Everyone can."

Whether Misty knew about that or not wasn't really her concern, but she knew for a fact that the swamp witch had helped their Supreme in their past. It was slightly disheartening that Misty couldn't see that (or accept it).

"Maybe," Misty says unconvinced, nodding slowly as she turns to look at the girl. "Have you worked on hand with plants in your class or you just reading from books?"

"We're working from books, but sometimes Zoe will give us a demonstration we can try on our own. We haven't done a whole lot, just a basic levitation spell..." Mallory trails off, unsure of where this is going.

"Well, since you're here, how about I teach you a bit hands on, get you more used to the plants you see in the book and I'll teach ya a few basic potions Miss Cordelia taught me, huh?" Misty offers, honestly just wanting to move away from the topic. She also figures that Mallory would enjoy the lesson, since the girl had been curious enough to come in.

Mallory can't help the excitement in her voice, the way her eyes light up at the offer. "Yeah, if you want."

" 'Course, that's why I offered," Misty said, releasing her lip from between her teeth. She brushes her fingers along a blue pot, her lips tugging into a small smile as she notices the way Mallory focuses, her excitement contagious.

Misty slowly goes down the line of plants in front of them, fingers brushing the pots as she goes down the line with Mallory following close behind. "So, this one here is rosemary, that one is sage, lavender..."  
— — —  
Misty isn't sure how long she and Mallory were in the greenhouse for, although she really didn't mind. Mallory had been a natural at working with the plants and potions, easily identifying herbs and shrubs with names so long, Misty herself barely remembered them. The young witch had even picked up easily on the simple potions, repeating the incantations with the intensity Cordelia used to.

It had felt... really nice to see how excited Mallory was at her successes, even rewarding to Misty because she felt useful for the first time since she had come back from Hell. The lesson she had with Mallory had been the distraction she needed, the thing to keep her head on the things in front of her and not on her past nightmares. Maybe taking over the potions and herbs class would be really good for her.

As she wondered up the stairs, still lost in thought, she saw Zoe walking towards her, arms full with a binder and some folders. Misty went to greet her friend, but was cut off when Zoe greeted her with a question of her own.

"Hey, Misty! Did you see Mallory today? She wasn't in herbs class today and she never usually misses..." She trails off then looks at the taller blonde with a questioning gaze.

Misty sheepishly ducks her head, her cheeks warm as she rubs her arm awkwardly. "I'm sorry, Zo, if I would have known she had your class, I would have told her to go there instead of being cooped up with me in the greenhouse!"

"She was in the greenhouse with you?" Zoe asked, her expression and tone still curious, but, to Misty's relief, not mad or annoyed.

The older girl sucked in a breath as she nodded, playing with the end of her shawl. "Yeah, I was in there cause I... missed being in there and she found me. Asked about some plants and then I offered to teach her about some; I'm sorry, I hope you ain't mad," Misty says sincerely, looking at her friend apologetically.

"No way, I think that's great, Misty! Mallory's always the student that wants to get hands on when it comes to nature, but we never really go outside the classroom for lessons," Zoe explains with a smile. "I bet she loved the hands on experience."

Misty relaxes and gives the younger brunette a smile of her own. She didn't know why she was so worried about Zoe being upset; she was always a fair person. Misty should have known she would have had nothing to worry about.

The older witch nods, biting her lip to suppress another smile. "She reminds me of a little mini me. I was always so excited to go out with nature as a little girl, I still am. And it was really nice teaching her about the stuff I love..."

"It sounded like it was good for you both. You look different, happy," Zoe notes with a grin. "You're starting to sound like the old Misty Day."

Misty flushes again, chewing on her lip as she breaks out in another smile. "It was a distraction from my other thoughts, gave me a reason to focus on here and not on the things that happened... I was going to talk to you and Miss Cordelia about taking the class over for you" she says slowly, hesitantly, as she wasn't sure how her friend would react to that.

Misty's judge of character sucks because Zoe's eyes widen and she smiles excitedly, even looking somewhat relieved, all for the proposition. "Of course! I think it would be good for you and the girls, I'm still not that familiar with potions or plants... That stuff comes so easy to you. I think it's a really good idea, Misty. I think you'd be really good with the girls, too."

"You really think so?" the older blonde asks shyly.

Zoe nods, laughing a bit. "Of course, I do. I'll talk to Cordelia about it tomorrow okay, put in a good word for you," she adds with a wink.

Misty has to hold back from throwing her arms around the younger witch, smiling at her instead. "Thank you, it means a lot that you'd do this for me."

Zoe nods and gives her friend another warm smile. "Of course, Misty, it's no big deal."

She adjusts her grip on the items in her arms, smiling apologetically. "I'm gonna have to leave you now, got a fun night planned ahead," she jokes, hoisting the folders in binder in her arms a bit. "Hope you're going to be ready for all of this paperwork that comes with teaching."

Misty grins despite herself, chuckling at her friend's behavior. "I'm looking forward to it. See ya, Zoe."

"It's good to have you back, Misty," Zoe replies softly, giving her friend one last smile before walking past her.

Before she gets too far, Misty remembers the spells in the greenhouse and her smile drops, biting back down on her lip again. "Actually, Zoe, I have a question for you real quick."

Zoe pauses and turns around to the older witch, frowning in concern at her expression. "Yeah, what's up?"

Misty plays with her fingers and looks down at them nervously. "How long has Miss Cordelia been tryin' to get me back? I saw the spells in the greenhouse..."

"She tried to get you back since the day she completed the Seven Wonders," Zoe replies quietly, sighing quietly as she remembers the nights she would walk in to find Cordelia's hands hovering over a flame, or a bowl of herbs and powders, chanting spells in desperation as she attempted to even contact Misty Day.

It had been really hard for her to see her Supreme feel so lost, so hopeless again.

She wasn't the same Cordelia she and Misty once knew, she was stronger and more confident than she ever was before. However, there was still part of her that was missing with Misty gone, everyone could tell.

"She blamed herself for the longest time, even though Queenie and I told her that it wasn't her fault. It wasn't your's either, before you start to blame yourself. We all felt pressure to take the test because of the treat of Fiona and the witch hunters. It was just the pressure of what was going on around us..."

Misty nods, part of her still blaming herself for what she put Cordelia through. "Do you know... I mean, why did she try to bring me back? I'm nobody special, I'm just a swamp rat..."

"You're not nobody, Misty," Zoe cuts her off firmly. "You're a part of our coven, just as you were back then. But it wasn't just that. Even then, Cordelia cared about you a lot. She wanted to do everything in her power to bring you back."

"She cares about everyone," Misty mumbles, unsure of how else to respond to Zoe's statement.

Zoe smiles a bit. "Not in the way she cares about you. Good night, Misty," she says quietly, turning and walking off before Misty could question what the hell she meant by that.

The older witch stares after her friend for a moment, puzzled. She was starting to get really confused as to why everybody is making a big deal out of nothing and trying to make something out of that nothing.

First, Mallory insists the wild blonde witch had helped Cordelia come into her confidence, but Misty refused to accept that. Cordelia's confidence was something kept smothered by Fiona's disapproval, by her disappointment. Every single time she had any sort of accomplishment, the old Supreme would immediately shut her down, Misty could tell that just by observing the two interact the within the short time she had first come into the house.

With her gone, Misty saw Cordelia grow into the confidence she felt within the woman. She had done that all her own. Misty couldn't even begin to imagine what she had said or done to make anyone think the swamp witch had helped the Supreme with that.

Zoe's comment was even more confusing to her, even a bit frustrating. Of course Cordelia cared about all her girls, Misty knew that (whether she accepted it fully or not was a different story). She couldn't understand why the Supreme cared about her, let alone so much so that she has spells written down to try and contact her during her time in Hell.

Her head is swirling with all these questions as she slowly makes her journey to the headmistress's office.

The swamp witch pauses outside the open door, her mind going blank as she looks at the woman sitting at her desk.

Cordelia has her glasses on, expression focused as her fingers glide her pen across the papers in front of her. Her hair's up in a sloppy bun, loose hairs hanging beside her cheek or tucked carefully behind her ear. She's still in her all black outfit she wears to council meetings- she must have just gotten out from one. Even in the dim light of the room, she still looks gorgeous.

Misty leans a hand up against the door frame, heart pounding as she admires the Supreme. If she had any minuscule doubts about where she was before, they were all gone now; Hell would never bless her with a sight as beautiful as this.

The swamp witch flushes at her shameless thoughts, deciding to stop being such a creep and make her presence known.

"Knock, knock," she says quietly, in a tone that comes out a bit husky and she has to stop herself from cringing. Good Lord was she awkward.

Cordelia looks up from her papers and smiles instantly when she sees the swamp witch, putting her pen down. "I was wondering when you'd come in," she teases Misty lightly, amused.

Misty flushes at this comment, ducking her head- of course Cordelia had sensed her. She was the fucking Supreme, after all. The swamp witch could have been miles away and, if she really focused and wanted to, Cordelia would have sensed her.

While Misty is slightly embarrassed at not making her presence known immediately, she's relieved that her Supreme doesn't bring up the fact she had been staring. Since Cordelia doesn't bring it up, neither will she- so she looks up at the woman as if it hadn't happened. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bother you, Miss Cordelia. You look busy, I can come back later..." Misty says, gesturing down the hall but the older witch cuts her off.

"Nonsense, you aren't a bother. I was just finishing up some paper work, but it can wait. Why don't you come in, Misty?"

The younger blonde hesitates slightly in the doorframe, watching carefully as the headmistress pushes her papers to the side and looks back up at her. "The paperwork can wait, I promise," she assures the girl, giving her a soft smile that makes Misty give in without protest. "What have you done today? How have you been doing?"

The younger witch comes in the room and shuts the door slowly, letting the silence offer her a distraction from the questions. She turns just as slowly towards the inside of the room, clasping her hands together, rings knocking together with an audible click. She addresses her Supreme's first question slowly, avoiding bringing up the spells she found.

"I went into the greenhouse today. It was really quiet in there, somewhere I could get away for a while. It was nice being back out there. You kept my Stevie..." She trailed off and locked eyes with Cordelia, who flushes slightly at the statement. Neither witch had to say it, and Misty knew that the Supreme only kept them around in case Misty did come back (the spells proved that), so she just nodded and smiled a bit. "Thank you for that."

"Mallory came in," she continues, playing with the rings on her fingers. "She knew some about plants, but not a lot. So, I taught her some, did some spells you taught me. I think she liked it. And I enjoyed doing it," she smiles, remembering the pride she had felt when the young witch accomplished something.

"I think I want to teach a class... It'll keep me busy and it really helps distract me from my thoughts..." She trails off again and looks at Cordelia hopefully.

The Supreme smiles in response and even laughs to herself. "I think Zoe would be more than thrilled to give you the herbs and potions class as soon as you want it."

Misty's heart flutters at this, and she can't help but grin. "Thank you, Miss Cordelia."

She turns her attention to the bookcase, studying the bindings and spines of each one as she tries to figure out how to address her Supreme's second question. She's hesitant, but slowly she starts to speak. "As for how I'm doing... Well, some days are better than others, I suppose," she breathes out, studying the script fonts that littered most of the book's spines.

"Today was okay for the most part. There's still times where I forget I'm not there anymore, that I'm here... But I'm getting better at telling what's real and what's not... Teaching Mallory helped a lot, distracted me some."

Cordelia releases a breath Misty knew she had been holding- she could sense the woman's tension as soon as the question left her lips. "That's good... I'm glad it's getting easier," the Supreme murmurs, seeming slightly relieved.

"You don't have to be scared of you ask me, Miss Cordelia. I know you're just worried, so you won't offend me, if that's what you think," Misty murmurs, turning to the Supreme as her lips tug up a bit at the corners. "Some things I just gotta figure out on my own."

Cordelia's shoulders relax as she breathes out and nods. "You're right, I'm sorry."

"No need to apologize. It's nice to know someone cares," the younger witch says softly, smiling reassuringly at the Supreme. She turns back and looks at the pictures on the walls, unsure of what to do or say, worried she would say something stupid.

"You don't have to keep calling me "Miss", Misty," Cordelia says, slightly amused once more as she tries to get a conversation going. "I consider you to be on the level of my council, my friend, you don't have to use it anymore," she adds, a bit more seriously.

"You're my Supreme, it only seems right to address you as "Miss". Seems respectful and polite," Misty murmurs, clearing her throat before she finally decides to sit on the small couch that laid just a few feet from Cordelia's desk. No matter how weird the formality rolled off her tongue now, Misty wouldn't dare drop the term from her name around the Supreme. "I don't want to disrespect you."

"You could never disrespect me, Misty, you never did. You were always the one I felt the most respect from," the older witch says, voice catching at the end. Cordelia bites her lip before she can get too emotional, taking a deep breath to compose herself. "You always believed in me."

"Course I did, I knew from the moment I walked into their building you were a great leader. Thought everyone was pulling my leg when they said Fiona was the leader," Misty says, trying not to sound too disgusted when she spits out Fiona's name. "Besides, you welcomed me into this house like I was one of your own, the least I could do was respect you."

"You were seeking safety, I wasn't about to leave you to your own defenses. You're one of us, even if you didn't feel like it at times, this was and still is your tribe."

"Only because you made me feel like I belonged here, Miss Cordelia," Misty murmurs without really thinking. She tucks her bottom lip between her teeth and flushes at her own words, clearing her throat before things get a chance to be awkward.

"If you want me to drop the "miss" from your name, I will. But only if that's what you want," she says, turning to the Supreme and playing with the tassels of her shawl to calm her nerves.

"If you don't want to, Misty, you don't have to drop it," Cordelia replies softly.

"Nah, I don't mind it, only if you're sure it's not disrespectful."

"It's not, but if it makes you more comfortable..." the older blonde insists, cheeks turning pink at the silliness of the petty argument.

The swamp witch's eyes light up a bit, a smirk slowly tugging at the corners of her lips. "Now, I reckon if you do that, this little argument will go on for quite some time without us getting anywhere. I'm stubborn as a mule and know you'll just want to do what makes me happy. So how about, for the sake of keeping this short, I follow your suggestion as my Supreme and drop the "miss", okay, Cordelia?"

The Supreme laughs softly and shakes her head. "I think that was a good call, Misty," she murmurs.

There's another silence that falls between them, this one more comfortable, more relaxing. It had been a while since the younger blonde had felt this at peace, this comfortable.

The silence reminds Misty of their moments in the greenhouse, just the two of them engrossed in potions and the plants with Stevie playing quietly on the stereo in the background.

"I really missed you."

Cordelia's whisper breaks through Misty's thoughts, causing the younger witch to focus once more on her Superior. The whisper is so full of emotion, so raw Misty's heart can't help but flutter at the tone. "I missed you, too," she whispers back.

When the Supreme's eyes start to water and her expression falls, Misty feels her heart shatter at the sight. Her eyebrows furrow in concern and she moves closer to the woman, not stopping until she's in front of her desk. "Hey, hey, I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-" she starts softly, reaching out and grasping Cordelia's hands in her own.

The older witch shakes her head quickly, stifling her cries by biting her lip. "No, Misty, you didn't... You didn't do anything wrong. It's just..." she trails off as more tears fall down her cheek. She closes her eyes when she feels Misty's thumb swiping them away, patiently waiting for her to continue.

She shakes her head again and opens her eyes, looking anywhere but at the other witch's concerned (and slightly guilty) eyes. "I tried so damn hard to bring you back. From the moment I rose as Supreme, I tried everything I could to bring you back to the coven. And I couldn't, no matter what I tried it never worked. It was all my fault you were down there, all my fault you're still hurting. I should have never made you participate in the Seven Wonders. You told me that you didn't want to be the Supreme, but I made you do it anyway. It's all my fault you got trapped. It's my fault that you even had to miss me. It's my fault-"

"You stop that nonsense right now, Cordelia Goode," Misty cuts her off firmly, shaking her head and grasping the older witch's hands tightly. She locks eyes with the Supreme, expression softening slightly, but the intensity of her voice never wavering.

"Now, you listen to me, none of this is your fault. I went into that test willingly, I knew the consequences, knew that I could possibly die. You didn't make me do anything, I took the test because I wanted to. It's not your fault I failed, so stop blaming yourself for things that you can't control," she murmurs, thumbs rubbing circles into the back of Cordelia's hands.

The Supreme's lip trembles as she sniffs, a fresh round of tears trailing down her face. "I tried so hard to get you back, Misty."

"I know," she says quietly, not really caring about the repercussions as she wraps the older woman up in a soothing hug, rubbing her shoulders.

She decides now is the time to bring up what else she found.

"I saw the spells in the greenhouse. And Zoe said you tried hard to bring me back, too."

Her fingers trace random shapes onto Cordelia's back as she releases a soft sigh. "Why?" she ends up asking really softly, almost sounding like a small, scared child.

"Because you didn't deserve to be down there. You're a part of this coven, my responsibility, so I needed to at least try to get you back," Cordelia answers just as softly, hiding her face in Misty's neck, her tears leaving trails on her skin and staining her shawl.

"That's not what I mean," the swamp witch sighs, pulling back to look at the Supreme's face, at her confused state.

"Then what do you mean?"

Misty looks around the room once more, dropping her hands from Cordelia so that they can tangle together from her nerves. "I mean, why did you bring me back? Why do you care so much about me to try so hard to bring me back?"

Before the Supreme can cut her off, Misty continues.

"Mallory said something about it in the greenhouse, said it was obvious that I matter to you. And then Zoe in the hallway said that you care about me, but not like you do everyone else and I really don't understand it. I don't understand why you think so much of me when I'm nothing but just some dumb, hippy swamp rat that couldn't even perform four of the Seven Wonders," she finishes, pulling away and standing up. She wraps her shawl around herself tightly, shielding herself from all the insecurities she feels from her statement.

Maybe it was just the frustrations the built up from before, how confused she had felt that Cordelia had so willingly took her in when she was honestly nothing special.

Perhaps it was the frustrations of Zoe and Mallory's words, how cryptic both young witches were.

All Misty knows is that she's heard from Madison that ranting like this is supposed to make her feel better, but she honestly just feels worse, especially with Cordelia's silence.

But then, finally, the Supreme speaks up. "You don't get it, do you?" she asks timidly, reaching out and brushing the younger witch's arms with her fingertips before she stands up. "Of course, I care about you, and of course you mean a lot to me. You're not some dumb swamp rat, you're an extremely, talented witch that needed help. You belong here, you always have..."

"So is that it?" Misty almost scoffs, keeping her arms wrapped around herself in a protective hug. "All this cryptic bullshit is just to pull my leg and have a little laugh at my expense?"

"No, it's not like that at all, Misty. There's more to it," Cordelia insists, almost pleading the other witch to understand.

"So, be straight with me then, Cordelia. Cause, quite frankly, I'm just getting more and more confused and fed up with everything people are telling me. It's like you're all speaking in riddles that I just don't understand. Nobody's bothering to tell me what the hell they're talking about, so can you please just tell me what you mean?"

"Christ... I'm in love with you Misty Day, and that's the truth, no bullshit, no riddles, nothing more to it," the Supreme finally cracks, looking away from the younger blonde, afraid of the rejection. However, the damage is done, so she continues, voice cracking slightly.

"I did it all because I love you. From the moment you walked into this academy, I knew there was something about you, something that pulled me in and made me feel like I never had before. You were the one person I could confide in, someone I could trust in a time I had absolutely no one. The others were scared of me, they felt sorry for me, because of the Sight and my blindness. They knew I could see all their secrets, their betrayals, their pity, their lies, their fears, their insecurities, everything. And then you showed up, opening yourself up to me without any hesitation. You were the first person in weeks to willingly offer me your hand to allow me to see all of you and hid nothing. You didn't pity me, you treated me as an equal, even in my lowest times, you were there to pick me back up and help me believe in myself."

Her voice shakes, palms closed into fists on her desk. "I fell in love with you from the very first moment we shared in the greenhouse. I loved you even as you turned to dust into my arms, and loved you just the same as you came through those doors of the academy once again, back home..." It's not said out loud, but there's the implied "to me" in the way Cordelia stares at Misty, at the way her lower lip trembles at the unspoken thoughts.

"So that's why I tried so hard to get you back, and that's why you matter so much to me and I know this is all so much to take in, and I know you just got back from Hell but, god, can you please say something so I don't feel like such an idiot for-" she pleads, more tears falling down her cheeks before she stops mid-sentence because she feels the cool metal of Misty's rings as she cups her face.

And she hears herself gasp at the warm feeling of Misty's lips on hers, at the feeling of the soft, passionate kiss.

Her own hands clumsily fumble around before the come to a rest on the taller blonde's chest, curling up there as she shuts her eyes and kisses her back.

Perhaps the kiss is over too soon, but Cordelia can't complain much when Misty's hands stay on her face and she doesn't even look upset. In fact, the look Misty is giving her is making her feel like the single most precious thing on earth, a look that has her biting her lip and flushing. "Was that your way of shutting me up?" she murmurs.

Misty's curls bounce as she shakes her head and bites on her lip. "No, I hated seeing you so upset."

"Oh."

Misty shakes her head again, thumb gently tracing the Supreme's lips before tracing along her jawline. "That's not all I did it for. I did it because I love you too, as much as I did before as I do now. You're still the one thing about this place that truly makes it feel like home, not just a house. You always have, and you always will." She laughs once, but it's more of a soft exhale.. "I mean, christ, Nan brought me back to you, not to my swamp, not to my garden, but straight to you. She brought me back to you for a reason."

"You really mean that? You're not just saying that? I'm not forcing you to say any of this because you feel sorry for me?" Cordelia breathes out.

The younger blonde takes one of the Supreme's hands and presses it against her cheek, locking eyes with her. "Do you see that, feel that? You're not making me say or do anything that I don't want to. So, believe me when I say that I love you, Cordelia, because it is the most honest and sure thing I have ever told anyone in my god damn life."

Their kiss is more intense this time, passionate, with Cordelia's hands tugging at Misty's waist, Misty's hands cupping her head up so she doesn't have to lean up as much. It's the intensity of their kiss that has both their magic buzzing, making them both dizzy, but their lips don't break apart, not until they both need oxygen.

Both women's eyes open, locking with each other as they attempt to catch their breath. Their hands find each other naturally, fingers looping together and fitting perfectly like puzzle pieces.

The Supreme looks down at them with a soft smile, biting her lip. She blushes slight when Misty's other hand comes up and wipes at her tears, kissing her cheek softly.

"Cordelia?"

"Yes, Misty?"

The swamp witch takes her own glance down at their fingers, swinging them carefully with a small sigh. She smiles slightly when she looks back up at Cordelia, bring their hands up to her lips and pressing a light kiss to the back of the Supreme's.

"I think today didn't end up being so bad, after all. I don't think I have to worry about having a bad day again."

**Author's Note:**

> i just really miss the witches guys like ik they're coming back but i want them next season
> 
>  
> 
> (also unrelated but how do we feel about a malloryxzoe one shot?? have an idea for it but also if no one reads it/finds it worth it then i'm not gonna go through with it)


End file.
